Search Results (281)

Agri-food systems are increasingly exposed to environmental, economic, and social challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, resource depletion, and growing territorial inequalities. In this context, agroecology is increasingly recognised as a transformative paradigm integrating ecological, economic, social, cultural, and political dimensions within broader processes of food-system transition. Within the PRIMA AgrEcoMed project, 24 Italian agroecological initiatives led by women and young farmers were analysed to explore their contribution to agroecological transition processes in Mediterranean rural areas. The study adopts a qualitative multiple-case study approach and evaluates the selected initiatives through the framework of the 13 Principles of Agroecology proposed by the High-Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition, organised into three operational axes: improving resource efficiency, strengthening resilience, and ensuring social responsibility and fairness. The results show that the analysed initiatives combine ecological farming practices with processes of multifunctionality, territorial networking, knowledge co-creation, short supply chains, and community engagement. The findings suggest that several initiatives move beyond input-reduction strategies associated with “weak agroecology” and display characteristics consistent with stronger agroecological pathways based on territorial embeddedness, collective learning, and the reorganisation of relationships between production, consumption, and local communities. The paper highlights the relevance of agroecology not only as an environmentally sustainable farming approach, but also as a broader socio-ecological and territorial transition process, as well as the importance of policy frameworks to support territorial agroecological systems. Full article

Youth leadership plays an important role in addressing social challenges within environments with limited resources and institutional constraints. However, there is still a paucity of research that has examined how leadership develops in practice while facing such circumstances. In response, this study explores how participation in the Youth Citizens Action Programme (YCAP) in South African schools contributes to the development of leadership for social justice among young people, adopting a micro-macro lens. A qualitative, exploratory, and contextual design was adopted, using semi-structured interviews with nine purposively selected YCAP alumni. The results show that youth leadership for social justice emerges through young people’s responses to macro-level institutional inequalities as they must identify and address local social justice challenges. As a result, they develop a leadership identity at the micro level and the application of leadership skills as a micro-bridge. Furthermore, enabling and restricting macro-level conditions determine the extent to which youth leadership can be sustained. The results advance the idea that organised programmes such as YCAP may support meaningful youth participation and provide insight into how such initiatives can enable young people to address social justice challenges as leaders within their communities. Full article

Background/Objective: Parental feeding practices play an important role in shaping children’s dietary intake, eating behaviours, and long-term health outcomes. Although several questionnaires assess feeding practices, few have been validated among socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, despite these groups being disproportionately affected by food insecurity and diet-related health inequities. This study assessed the structural validity and internal consistency of the Feeding Practices and Structure Questionnaire—Solid Feeding version (FPSQ-S)—among socioeconomically disadvantaged mothers and fathers of young children. Methods: Two cross-sectional online surveys were conducted with 178 mothers and 94 fathers of children aged 5–35 months living in disadvantaged households. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to examine the structural validity of the FPSQ-S. Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha and Hancock’s H coefficients. Results: The original six-factor FPSQ-S structure was retained and demonstrated acceptable overall model fit in this disadvantaged sample (CFI = 0.846, TLI = 0.821, RMSEA = 0.070). Internal consistency ranged from acceptable to excellent across subscales (Cronbach’s α = 0.63–0.93; Hancock’s H = 0.64–0.93). Most items loaded satisfactorily onto their intended constructs; however, two items within the Feeding on Demand construct demonstrated weak factor loadings, and this construct showed lower reliability than the remaining subscales Conclusions: This is the first study to evaluate the FPSQ-S among socioeconomically disadvantaged mothers and fathers of children aged 5–35 months. The FPSQ-S demonstrated acceptable structural validity and reliability. While the six-factor structure was largely supported, further refinement of the Feeding on Demand construct and additional psychometric evaluation are warranted. Full article

Frequency instability caused by reduced system inertia in inverter-dominated islanded microgrids represents a critical challenge in renewable-integrated power systems. Conventional fixed-parameter controllers exhibit limited adaptability to uncertain and time-varying low-inertia conditions. This paper proposes an LSTM–MPC + VIC framework that embeds a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) surrogate predictor directly within a Model Predictive Control (MPC) optimisation loop, coordinated with a Virtual Inertia Controller (VIC) for immediate transient support. The LSTM provides data-driven frequency predictions without requiring precise analytical system modelling, while the VIC supplies reactive inertial damping within the same control cycle. The proposed controller is evaluated against Proportional–Integral–Derivative (PID), PSO-optimised PID, and standard MPC baselines on a 50 Hz islanded microgrid. Results demonstrate the lowest maximum frequency deviation of 0.009748 Hz, fastest settling time of 36.34 s, and minimum integral absolute error of 0.12283 Hz·s among all controllers. A Lyapunov-based Input-to-State Stability (ISS) analysis, incorporating the load disturbance term via Young’s inequality, confirms an ISS ultimate bound of 0.057866 Hz and an effective decay rate of 1.2952 s⁻¹. Robustness is further validated through multi-scenario testing, parametric sensitivity analysis, component ablation, and computational feasibility assessment, confirming suitability for real-time deployment in low-inertia microgrid systems. Full article

Christian ethics are often associated with dichotomies such as right versus wrong, good versus evil, and moral versus immoral. How do young Black people with diverse sexual identities who also embrace Christianity understand such ethics? What constitutes Christian ethics for people who live on the margins and are often vilified for their racial and sexual identities? This mixed-methodological study considers these questions for a group of 76 young Black members of the LGBTQIA community aged 18–30 years old. The study is also designed to theorize and apply the concept of everyday sacredness as an ethos to illuminate the religious and spiritual experiences of Black sexual minorities. Three themes emerge that focus on ethical expectations. The initial theme reflects common questions about historic and present-day unethical practices in certain Black churches linked to homophobia and heterosexism found in current studies. The second, more spiritually focused theme, presents agape love as an ethical response to all God’s creation. The final practically focused theme emphasizes holistic health as an ethical response to health inequities in the Black LGBTQIA community. Full article

Background/Objectives: South Korea became a super-aged society in 2024, and this demographic shift is unfolding alongside the depopulation of rural municipalities across the country. How spatial inequality and community social capital jointly relate to elderly health—and whether those relationships look different for younger versus older elderly—remains an open question. We investigated associations between two dimensions of community social capital (sense of belonging and neighbor communication), subjective perception of capital–provincial inequality, and self-rated health among Korean elderly, with separate analyses for the Young-Old (aged 60–69) and Old-Old (aged 70+). Methods: We used the 2024 Social Integration Survey from the Korea Institute of Public Administration (full sample N = 2588; elderly subsample N = 1020). Random intercept hierarchical linear models accounted for the nesting of individuals within 17 metropolitan cities and provinces. Stepwise models examined social capital antecedents, a healthcare satisfaction indirect association pathway, and the direct association of spatial inequality perception with health. The elderly subsample was stratified into Young-Old (N = 289) and Old-Old (N = 731). A mixed-effects ordered logistic regression with Liang–Zeger cluster-robust standard errors was estimated as a robustness check. Results: Sense of belonging was positively associated with subjective health among the elderly (B = 0.065, p < 0.05) as a net of rurality and socioeconomic controls. Perceived spatial inequality showed a negative association (B = −0.070, p < 0.05). The indirect association pathway through healthcare satisfaction was not supported (Sobel Z = −1.458, p = 0.144). Age-stratified models revealed a striking split: belonging was the dominant predictor for the Young-Old (B = 0.149, p < 0.01), while neighbor communication (B = 0.078, p < 0.05) and spatial inequality perception (B = −0.092, p < 0.01) were significant only among the Old-Old. The ordered logistic robustness check confirmed the negative association of perceived spatial inequality across all specifications. Conclusions: What predicts health in the younger elderly is not what predicts health in the older elderly. Korea’s Integrated Community Care Act, set for nationwide rollout in 2026, should account for this divergence—prioritizing psychological community attachment for the Young-Old and face-to-face social contact combined with regional equity for the Old-Old. Full article

This article investigates new classes of integral inequalities within the framework of a recently introduced fractional operator: the cotangent fractional integral with respect to a rising function (RAF) ℵ. The cornerstone of this study is the derivation of a generalized Grüss-type inequality, along with several related refinements, employing this novel operator. Our methodology strategically combines the properties of the cotangent fractional integral with classical analytical tools, including Young’s inequality and weighted arithmetic–geometric mean arguments. The results obtained are highly versatile, as they not only provide new bounds for this specific operator but also, through appropriate choices of the function ℵ and the parameter $r_1$, reduce elegantly to corresponding inequalities for well-known fractional integrals, such as those of Riemann–Liouville (RL), Hadamard, and Katugampola. Several corollaries are presented to illustrate these connections and recover existing results from the literature, thereby demonstrating the unifying nature of our approach. Full article

Firearm homicide is a leading cause of death among children and young men in the U.S. (ages 1–19), with young Black males in urban environments facing rates 18-to-24-fold higher than their non-Hispanic White peers in 2023. A key precursor to firearm violence victimization is weapon-carrying behavior (WCB), defined as carrying, concealing, or displaying firearms or other weapons in community or social contexts that elevate risk for injury, interpersonal threats, or law enforcement contact. Several structural, behavioral, and trauma-based risk factors fuel weapon-carrying. Yet these WCBs are rarely studied in tandem, leaving a critical gap in our understanding of these high-risk behaviors for youth. This cross-sectional study leveraged baseline data from a convenience sample of 226 violence-exposed urban young Black males, ages 15–24 (M_age = 18.3 years; SD = 3.1) enrolled in a trauma-informed digital firearm violence prevention pilot study. Eligibility required prior personal or witnessed experience of youth violence; reported prevalence therefore characterizes a high-risk subgroup rather than urban young Black males as a whole. Past-30-day weapon-carrying frequency was measured across five YRBS-aligned categories (0, 1, 2 to 3, 4 to 5, and 6+ days) and modeled as a categorical index under negative binomial regression. Associations with peer and community violence exposure, substance use, sociodemographic, and socioeconomic factors were estimated as incidence rate ratios (IRRs) with 95% CI. Past-30-day weapon carrying was reported by 42.5% of participants, with carrying frequency ranging from 1 day to 6 or more days. Participants reported high levels of direct victimization (64.8%), witnessing community violence (76.4%), and use of nonprescribed medications, including in instances preceding violence. In the fully adjusted model, indicators of violence exposure were the most consistent correlates of carrying. Direct victimization (IRR = 1.15, p < 0.05), general exposure to violence or aggression (IRR = 7.82, p < 0.01), and physical fighting (IRR = 1.11, p < 0.05) remained independently significant. Conversely, associations with substance use, dating aggression, and employment were attenuated, suggesting shared ecological vulnerability rather than independent causal pathways. Findings underscore the central role of chronic violence exposure and support the need for trauma-informed, multilevel prevention strategies in clinical and community settings. Full article

Background/Objectives: Despite legal progress and achievements regarding trans* rights in Portugal over recent decades, trans* individuals still face high levels of violence and discrimination, especially within family and intimate relationships. This qualitative study aimed to explore the experiences and perspectives of professionals working in the domestic violence field with the trans* population and service provision within the National Support Network for Victims of Domestic Violence (RNAVVD). Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight participants, including psychologists, social workers, and program directors from organizations supporting victims of domestic violence in Portugal. Data were analyzed using Codebook Thematic Analysis to identify themes, resulting in two main themes: (1) Experiences in Working with Victimized Trans* Individuals; and (2) Framework of Portugal’s National Support Network. Results: The results showed that trans* individuals face significant vulnerabilities due to family and intimate partner violence, systemic discrimination, and inequalities in essential services. Young trans* individuals are seen as being particularly at risk due to the impacts of violence and lack of family support on their autonomy, and additional barriers to entering the labor market. Participants also identified barriers faced by this population when trying to access victim support services (e.g., lack of specialized training and low availability of specialized and culturally competent services), while highlighting efforts by LGBTQIA+ services to meet their psychosocial needs. Conclusions: In conclusion, public institutions must address the specific needs of trans* individuals by developing policies and services that adopt a cross-sectoral, intersectional approach across society. Full article

Background/Objectives: Oral health promotion in early childhood depends strongly on caregivers’ preventive care at home and educational centers. The aim of this study was to investigate socioeconomic, educational, cultural, and oral health factors associated with caregivers’ decisions to decline their children’s participation in school-based oral health promotion programs. Methods: Caregivers who did not authorize their children’s participation in the project were identified through school records and contacted using available information (name, telephone number, and email address). Participants were selected through simple random sampling. Results: Among the 58 caregivers included in the study, the main reasons reported were failure to return the consent form or missing the deadline (36.2%), considering the child too young (19.0%), already receiving private dental care (13.8%), not understanding the consent form (13.8%), not having received the document (10.3%), lack of trust in the professional (3.4%), and other reasons (3.4%). Higher income was significantly associated with higher educational level (p = 0.002), increased toothbrushing frequency (p = 0.007), shorter time since the last dental visit (p < 0.001), and lower levels of embarrassment related to oral health (p < 0.001). Additionally, lower-income caregivers were more likely to seek dental care only in the presence of problems (p = 0.046), while higher-income families were more likely to report private dental care as a reason for non-authorization (p < 0.001). Conclusions: These findings associate socioeconomic and educational inequalities with adverse effects on family oral health among parents, by reducing the frequency of preventive dental examinations and daily oral hygiene practices; and among children, by limiting authorization to participate in school-based oral health promotion programs. This evidence underscores that successful promotion of children’s oral health in educational settings requires addressing social disparities while strengthening caregivers’ knowledge and motivation to support participation. Full article

Indigenous peoples in Amazonia face major mental health inequities, including high rates of suicidal behaviour among adolescents and young adults in some settings. We conducted a scoping review of the peer-reviewed literature on community health workers (CHWs) and equivalent cadres involved in Indigenous and remote contexts, with a focus on their roles in relation to mental health, psychosocial support, and suicide prevention among Indigenous populations in Amazonia and the Guiana Shield. We reported this review in line with PRISMA-ScR. Searches (September–November 2025) were conducted in PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science and SciELO, complemented by targeted searches in major publisher platforms and JSTOR. We included English, French, Spanish and Portuguese publications that (i) described CHWs or functionally equivalent cadres in Indigenous/remote contexts and/or (ii) reported CHW-related roles, models, or experiences relevant to mental health, psychosocial support or suicide prevention in Amazonian settings. Global documentation of CHW designations used in Indigenous/remote contexts was compiled; we compiled evidence from Amazonia and the Guiana Shield on CHW roles, programme models, implementation conditions and reported outcomes. Data were charted into a structured template (cadre designation, setting, population, study type, functions, programme features and reported mental health/suicide-related outcomes) and synthesised descriptively and thematically. CHWs commonly function as cultural and linguistic brokers between Indigenous communities and biomedical systems, supporting early detection of distress, psychosocial accompaniment, referral navigation and dialogue with local healing practices. Reported programme models differ markedly: Brazil’s institutionalised Indigenous Health Agents (AIS) offer stability and formal recognition, whereas French Guiana relies more heavily on project-based mediation with innovative practices but greater funding fragility. The available literature remains heterogeneous and uneven across countries, with limited evaluative designs and substantial reliance on descriptive reports. Future work should prioritise stronger implementation and impact evaluation, alongside Indigenous-led governance and sustainable support for CHW cadres. Full article

Africa has the world’s youngest population, and many young adults rely on informal or temporary employment, making digital financial literacy (DFL) critical for long-term financial resilience and sustainable economic development. In this paper, we present findings from a two-phase mixed-methods study. In Phase 1, we surveyed 300 Rwandans aged 18–32 on financial knowledge, digital skills, and financial behaviors to explore key gaps in DFL. Results show modest financial knowledge and moderate digital literacy, with common budgeting and saving practices but key cybersecurity awareness-practice gaps. Gender and education disparities are also evident. To address the low loan literacy observed in Phase 1 findings, we conceived an AI-enabled mobile money loan literacy chatbot and explored user interactions with the chatbot, along with perceived usability and usefulness in Phase 2. Our findings highlight design considerations for promoting intention to adopt DFL interventions. The study aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 1 (No Poverty), 5 (Gender Equality), 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), and 10 (Reduced Inequalities). Full article

Background: Healthcare policy in the United Kingdom recognizes that teenagers and young adults (TYAs: 16–24 years at diagnosis) require specialist care. In England, Principal Treatment Centers (PTCs) exist, delivering enhanced care exclusively within the PTC or as ‘joint care’ with designated hospitals (DHs). Central to this is the TYA multidisciplinary team (MDT) and an outreach model coordinating care between hospitals. We previously reported similar outcomes regardless of care location. Aims: To compare TYA experiences of care with healthcare professionals’ perspectives of the service they deliver. Methods: Mixed methods across England and Wales were used. The TYA-MDT identified TYAs who then received a postal invite to a cross-sectional survey capturing experiences of places of care, treatment, healthcare professional support (HCP), mental health, sexuality/fertility, clinical trials and care coordination. Comparisons were made based on exposure to care in a specialist TYA environment within 6 months of diagnosis: all-TYA-PTC (all care in the TYA-PTC, n = 70, 28%), no-TYA-PTC (no care in the TYA-PTC (n = 87, 35%): care delivered in a children/adult unit only), and joint care (care in a TYA-PTC and in a children’s/adult unit, n = 91, 36%). HCP perspectives were captured by rapid ethnography. Results: A total of 250/1056 (24%) TYAs participated. Overall, 200 (80%) rated their teams as excellent/good for helping them prepare for treatment. No evidence of significant differences existed between categories of care for proportions receiving support from key TYA-related professionals: TYA cancer nurse specialists (all-TYA-PTC n = 58, 91%; joint care n = 71, 88%; no-TYA-PTC n = 64, 82%) and social workers (all-TYA-PTC n = 30, 55%; joint care n = 36, 48%; no-TYA-PTC n = 28, 38%). A trend of diminishing support from youth support co-coordinators existed (all-TYA-PTC 63%; joint care 49%; no-TYA-PTC 40%, p = 0.069). This may explain why few differences in patient experiences existed across categories of care. Forty-nine HCPs participated. They were more critical in their interpretation of care, highlighting inequity in resources and challenges in some pathways and coordination. Conclusions: Similar access to age-appropriate support across care settings is likely to reflect recruitment methods. When TYAs are known to the MDT, age-appropriate care can be mobilized beyond TYA units, which could explain the equitable outcomes observed across different care locations in young people who responded to the survey. Nevertheless, gaps persist in communication and coordination, particularly within joint care models, and in the involvement of allied health professionals such as dieticians and physiotherapists, whose input is essential for rehabilitation and return to normal life. Strengthening these areas will require continued investment in workforce capacity and digital infrastructure to support genuinely coordinated, developmentally appropriate TYA cancer care. Full article

Background/Objectives: People experiencing homelessness (PEH) face greater morbidity, multimorbidity, and premature mortality than the general population. Medical data on this population in Gdańsk remain scarce. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence, age distribution, comorbidity burden, and healthcare utilization of selected neurological and vascular diseases among homeless men in Gdańsk, Poland. Methods: A retrospective secondary analysis was performed using data from 551 men residing in shelters operated by the largest PEH support organization in Gdańsk. A random sample of 226 individuals (95% confidence level) was analyzed, selected by randomization in Microsoft Excel. Data were extracted from interviews, verified medical documentation, and staff records. Results: Mean age was 57.0 (SD 12.9) years (median 60). Among the studied sample, essential (primary) hypertension (20.4%), heart failure (10.2%), atrial fibrillation (8.9%), and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (8.4%) were the most common conditions. Sequelae of cerebrovascular disease (ICD-10: I69) affected 8.9% of participants; this subgroup was older and had higher rates of disability certification and hospitalization than the overall sample. Epilepsy (12.0%) and polyneuropathy (4.0%) differed in age distribution, disability rates, and comorbidity burden, with the epilepsy subgroup displaying high substance-use prevalence. Overall, 44.0% of the sample had been hospitalized since 2019. Conclusions: Homeless men in Gdańsk present a high burden of neurological and vascular disease at comparatively young ages, along with substantial multimorbidity. These findings highlight structural inequalities in healthcare access and the need for integrated, equity-oriented health and social care interventions. Full article

The Heinz mean is well known for its symmetry. This property naturally extends to operators through the function $f\left(\kappa \right)=\left|\right||A^{\kappa }X{B}^{1-\kappa }+A^{1-\kappa }X{B}^{\kappa }\left|\right||,0\le \kappa \le 1.$ Since this function is convex and symmetric, it reaches its minimum at $\kappa =\frac{1}{2}$ and its maximum at the endpoints $\kappa =0$ and $\kappa =1$. In this paper, we exploit this symmetry together with the strict convexity of symmetrically normed ideals to characterize the equality cases in the Heinz inequality and related Young-type inequalities. Most of our results do not require the operators A and B to be invertible. For the cases that do require invertibility, such as those involving the logarithmic mean, we state this assumption explicitly. We also show new connections between equality in operator means, the relation $AX=XB$, and the Sylvester equation. Finally, for the trace-class ideal, we fully describe when the maximum and minimum values of $f\left(\kappa \right)$ are equal, using trace properties and Birkhoff–James orthogonality. Full article